Youth Company

Youth Theatre Camp Showcase, 2019.

Youth Theatre Lab

The Youth Theatre Lab is a summer camp program which aims to inspire, challenge, and amplify the authentic expression of young people through the performance and production of theatre. The Lab features a well-rounded theatre curriculum for middle and high school students focusing on training and performance.

About

Our week-long Lab offers serious theatre training taught by seasoned teachers and theatre professionals in a playful, supportive, and friendly way. The Lab focuses on the fundamentals of acting, including different acting techniques to build up your “toolbox,” a variety of performance workshops, like movement, improvisation, and voice and speech, and culminating in a live performance at our theatre.

Goal

At Vermont Stage, our Youth Theatre Lab aims to produce confident, curious, and compassionate teens. This program fosters a teen’s sense of belonging and meaningful connections with their peers. It also develops life skills which smooth the transition to adulthood. Here are some of the abilities that this program teaches:

A rich toolbox of techniques on the fundamentals of acting.
Introduction to foundational skills such at voice, choreography, and improvisation through our specialty workshops.
Applying these new artistic methods in a public performance.
Insightful reading comprehension and text analysis.
Collaboration and commitment to challenging projects.
Trust in themselves and empathy and compassion for others.

We hope you will join us for our week-long theatre training program for teens! We will be hosting two week-long sessions, open to middle and high school students, ages 13-18.

Sign-up
Lab Leaders
Schedule
FAQs

The cost is $365 per student per week-long session, which runs from Monday through Saturday. Program cost includes two tickets for family members and friends to attend one of the live performances.

Session 1: June 16-June 21, 2025
Monday through Thursday from 9am-3:30pm, and Friday and Saturday from 9am-9pm. Live performances will be on Friday evening June 20 at 7pm, Saturday matinee June 21 at 2pm, and Saturday evening June 21 at 7pm.

Session 2: June 23-June 28, 2025
Monday through Thursday from 9am-3:30pm, and Friday and Saturday from 9am-9pm. Live performances will be on Friday evening June 27 at 7pm, Saturday matinee June 28 at 2pm, and Saturday evening June 28 at 7pm.

If you cannot pay in full up front, but would still like to register, please contact our education coordinator [email protected] to learn how you can get on a payment plan.

Financial Aid

We are committed to reserving space for students with a financial need, although space is limited.

If you would like to apply to be considered for one of these spaces, please email your interest to our Education Coordinator at [email protected].

Candy Padula
Direction

Candy has been working as a director, choreographer and theatre teacher for over 30 years in Vermont. She was an adjunct professor and director of the theatre department at Trinity College of Vermont where she taught acting and technical theatre. Candy has been the director of the theatre department at Mount Mansfield Union High School for the past 24 years, and for ten of those years she simultaneously ran the co-curricular theatre program at Champlain Valley Union High School. Candy most recently directed The Play That Goes Wrong for Vermont Stage. Some of her most memorable directing credits include The Laramie Project, Lend Me A Tenor, The 39 Steps, Clue, Steel Magnolias, The Drowsy Chaperone, Once on This Island, The Producers, Chicago, Spamalot and a production last year of Little Shop of Horrors which featured a guest appearance from Governor Phil Scott.

Alex Hudson
Acting

Alex was born and raised in Montreal. In high school she moved to Vermont before moving on to study acting at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC. She earned her Masters in Drama and Performance Studies at University College Dublin. Alex has been acting locally for over a decade and has taught acting at Champlain College, Full Circle Theater, The Flynn Theatre, and SOCAPA. She performs regularly with Stealing From Work and is the Founder of The Creative Mindfulness School.

Guest Artists
Our Youth Theatre Lab will have a different Guest Artist each day of the lab which will teach the students a new specialty, like fight choreography, improvisation, clowning, dance, costume design, vocal coaching, among others. The guest artists will be announced later this spring.

Here is a PDF copy of what the schedule for the week is for each student. This schedule also includes the performances.

What will I be doing at the Lab?

Each day students will be focused on 3 areas of performance study.

They will be learning the fundamentals of acting through scene work, monologues, and acting exercises.
They will have introductory lessons in skills that are foundational for any performer, like a session on stage combat, Shakespeare, choreography, voice and speech, and dialect work.
They will apply what they are learning to the rehearsals of a staged play which will culminate in a performance open to friends and family at the end of the week.

What is your policy on conflicts and absences?

Each student will have an important role to play in the staged performance so absences are not permitted. It is crucial that you look carefully at your availability and ensure you can commit to the entire week.

Do you offer scholarships or financial aid?

We are committed to reserving space for students with a financial need. If you would like to apply to be considered for one of these spaces, please email your interest to Shoshannah Boray, Education Coordinator, at [email protected].

Special Thanks to the Flat Rock Fund for their support of our education programs.

Sign-up

Lab Leaders

Candy Padula
Direction

Candy has been working as a director, choreographer and theatre teacher for over 30 years in Vermont. Candy was the founder and artistic director of Theatre Factory Inc. She was an adjunct professor and director of the theatre department at Trinity College of Vermont where she taught acting and technical theatre. Candy has been the director of the theatre department at Mount Mansfield Union High School for the past 24 years, and for ten of those years she simultaneously ran the co-curricular theatre program at Champlain Valley Union High School. Some of her most memorable directing credits include The Laramie Project, Lend Me A Tenor, The 39 Steps, Clue, The Importance of Being Earnest, Steel Magnolias, The Drowsy Chaperone, Once on This Island, The Producers, Chicago, Spamalot and a production last spring of Little Shop of Horrors which featured a guest appearance from Governor Phil Scott.

Alex Hudson
Acting

Alex was born and raised in Montreal. In high school she moved to Vermont before moving on to study acting at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC. She earned her Masters in Drama and Performance Studies at University College Dublin. Alex has been acting locally for over a decade and has taught acting at Champlain College, Full Circle Theater, The Flynn Theatre, and SOCAPA. She performs regularly with Stealing From Work and is the Founder of The Creative Mindfulness School.

Schedule